“This paper shows that most studies of Morgellons disease are appreciably flawed, and the disease does not meet criteria for a delusional disorder in accordance with the guidelines of the APA,” said Casey-Holman.

When does a “delusion” become reality? That question is addressed in the review paper entitled “History of Morgellons Disease: From Delusion to Definition” written by microbiologist Marianne Middelveen from Calgary, Canada, together with nurse practitioner Melissa Fesler and internist Raphael Stricker, MD from Union Square Medical Associates in San Francisco, CA.

Morgellons disease is a bizarre skin condition associated with tickborne disease. It is characterized by disfiguring skin lesions containing multicolored filaments, often accompanied by fatigue, joint and muscle pain and neurological problems. Morgellons disease is a controversial topic in medicine. The controversy surrounding this dermatological condition is explored in the February 2018 report published in the prestigious medical journal Clinical Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology (https://doi.org/10.2147/CCID.S152343).

“This paper compares the evidence of an infectious etiology for Morgellons disease to the evidence that it is a purely delusional illness,” says Cindy Casey-Holman, director of the Charles E. Holman Morgellons Disease Foundation (CEHMDF) of Austin, TX. To be diagnosed with a delusional disorder according to the guidelines of the American Psychiatric Association (APA), a patient’s symptoms must meet specific criteria. “This paper shows that most studies of Morgellons disease are appreciably flawed, and the disease does not meet criteria for a delusional disorder in accordance with the guidelines of the APA,” said Casey-Holman.

The CEHMDF has funded a number of research studies illuminating the origin of the colorful skin filaments and showing that Morgellons pathology is the result of an infection. Some mainstream medical practitioners claim that the microscopic colorful fibers are self-implanted textile fibers, or that patients think they are infested by bugs or worms. In fact the fibers found in Morgellons skin lesions are not textile fibers, nor are they bugs or worms. They are human biofibers composed of the proteins collagen and keratin and produced by skin cells. While the blue coloration is caused by melanin pigmentation, the cause of red coloration remains a mystery.

“Many doctors are reluctant to accept evidence that challenges the status quo,” says Casey-Holman. “We need doctors to objectively examine all the evidence, so that patients can get treated for the underlying infection.”
“Morgellons is not a mystery. A plausible explanation is supported by scientific evidence. The fibers are human structural proteins,” explains Fesler. “It results from an aberrant response to the presence of tickborne pathogens.” The study also highlights the presence of brain scan lesions in some Morgellons patients, confirming the non-delusional nature of the disease.

Morgellons skin lesions are associated with Lyme disease and other tickborne illnesses.

“To treat the skin condition one must first treat the underlying infection,” says Dr. Stricker. Several laboratories have detected live Lyme bacteria directly in Morgellons skin tissue provided that the correct detection methods are used. “As more laboratories confirm detection of pathogens from Morgellons patients, the evidence becomes more difficult to ignore,” states Middelveen. “Eventually this association will be recognized in mainstream medicine.”

About the Charles E. Holman Morgellons Disease Foundation:The Charles E. Holman Morgellons Disease Foundation, based in Austin, TX, is a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization committed to advocacy and philanthropy in the battle against Morgellons disease. Director, Cindy Casey-Holman, RN, leads the foundation, named for her husband, Charles E. Holman, a pioneer in the fight against Morgellons disease. Currently there is no public funding and very limited private funding to support research for this disease, and the CEHMDF is the recognized authority and primary funding source for Morgellons disease medical/scientific research. Donations are tax deductible in the US. To learn more about Morgellons disease go to:http://www.MorgellonsDisease.org
Contact information:http://www.thecehf.org/contact.html

History of Morgellons disease: from delusion to definition

Published 9 February 2018 Volume 2018:11 Pages 71—90

Marianne J Middelveen,1 Melissa C Fesler,2 Raphael B Stricker2

Abstract:

Morgellons disease (MD) is a skin condition characterized by the presence of multicolored filaments that lie under, are embedded in, or project from skin. Although the condition may have a longer history, disease matching the above description was first reported in the US in 2002. Since that time, the condition that we know as MD has become a polemic topic. Because individuals afflicted with the disease may have crawling or stinging sensations and sometimes believe they have an insect or parasite infestation, most medical practitioners consider MD a purely delusional disorder. Clinical studies supporting the hypothesis that MD is exclusively delusional in origin have considerable methodological flaws and often neglect the fact that mental disorders can result from underlying somatic illness. In contrast, rigorous experimental investigations show that this skin affliction results from a physiological response to the presence of an infectious agent. Recent studies from that point of view show an association between MD and spirochetal infection in humans, cattle, and dogs. These investigations have determined that the cutaneous filaments are not implanted textile fibers, but are composed of the cellular proteins keratin and collagen and result from overproduction of these filaments in response to spirochetal infection. Further studies of the genetics, pathogenesis, and treatment of MD are warranted.

February is Morgellons Awareness Month

Morgellons, which appears to have a connection to Lyme disease, is a controversial diagnosis in the medical world. Sufferers are often dismissed by their doctors as being delusional.

According to the foundation, Morgellons Disease (MD) is a multi-system illness uniquely characterized by the formation of unusual fibers within the skin. MD is a debilitating, painful and life impacting condition consisting of slow-healing skin lesions, overwhelming fatigue, GI disturbances and an array of neurological deficits. Patients with Morgellons may shed unusual appearing particles from the skin described as fibers, sand or seed-like, black specks, or crystalized particles.

Holman Foundation President Cindy Casey and others from the organization have been heavily involved with a documentary film project (still being edited) called Skin Deep: The Battle Over Morgellons. You can watch a trailer of the film here:

The 11th Annual Medical-Scientific Conference on Morgellons will be held on April 14-15, 2018 at the Wyndham Garden Hotel in Austin, Texas. This conference brings physicians, scientists, nurses, patients and their families together for 2 days of presentations. The very latest in research and treatment of Morgellons will be presented.

Background: Although canine clinical manifestations of Lyme disease vary widely, cutaneous manifestations are not well documented in dogs. In contrast, a variety of cutaneous manifestations are reported in human Lyme disease caused by the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi. A recently recognized dermopathy associated with tickborne illness known as Morgellons disease is characterized by brightly-colored filamentous inclusions and projections detected in ulcerative lesions and under unbroken skin.Recent studies have demonstrated that the dermal filaments are collagen and keratin biofibers produced by epithelial cells in response to spirochetal infection. We now describe a similar filamentous dermatitis in canine Lyme disease. Methods and Results: Nine dogs were found to have cutaneous ulcerative lesions containing embedded or projecting dermal filaments. Spirochetes characterized as Borrelia spp. were detected in skin tissue by culture, histology, immunohistochemistry, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and gene sequencing performed at five independent laboratories. Borrelia DNA was detected either directly from skin specimens or from cultures inoculated with skin specimens taken from the nine canine study subjects. Amplicon sequences from two canine samples matched gene sequences for Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto. PCR amplification failed to detect spirochetes in dermatological specimens from four healthy asymptomatic dogs. Conclusions: Our study provides evidence that a filamentous dermatitis analogous to Morgellons disease may be a manifestation of Lyme disease in domestic dogs.

“Similar skin lesions have previously been reported in bovine digital dermatitis, an infectious disease of cattle.

Most of the owners of the study dogs were healthy and were not familiar with Morgellons disease or Lyme disease; however, two of the owners also had Morgellons disease. “In those cases, we do not have evidence of contact transmission from human to animal or animal to human,” says Dr. Stricker, “it may be that both owner and dog were exposed to the same disease vector.”

“The finding of skin lesions similar to Morgellons disease, first in cattle and now in dogs, confirms that the skin disease is not a delusion, as some have maintained,” said Ms. Middelveen. “We need to learn much more about this mysterious skin condition.”

About the Charles E. Holman Morgellons Disease Foundation:The Charles E. Holman Morgellons Disease Foundation based in Austin, TX, is a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization committed to advocacy and philanthropy in the battle against Morgellons. Director, Cindy Casey-Holman, RN, leads the foundation, named for her husband, Charles E. Holman, a pioneer in the fight against MD. The CEHMDF is the recognized authority and primary funding source for Morgellons Disease medical-scientific research. There are neither grants, nor any other public or private funding to support research for Morgellons. Donations are tax deductible in the US. To learn more about Morgellons disease go to http://www.MorgellonsDisease.org“.

Morgellons: The legitimization of a disease: A Factual Guide by the World’s Leading Clinical Expert

“We have come a long way against great odds on our journey to legitimize Morgellons disease. Dr. Ginger Savely paved the earliest path on the rockiest road to make this progress possible. This book provides long-awaited answers to the vital questions being posed by thousands of patients and clinicians about this unthinkable disease. In reading Dr. Savely’s poignant narrative you will learn to separate fact from myth and rumor from reality. This book will be a valuable resource for Morgellons patients and their families and friends and will serve as a guide for health care providers who are open-minded and committed to the health of their patients”.

From the Foreword by Cindy Casey, RN, Director of the Charles E. Holman Morgellons Disease Foundation

Morgellons Disease – Video abstract 116608 Uploaded on Sep 28, 2016
Video abstract of review paper “Morgellons disease: a filamentous borrelial dermatitis” to be published in the International Journal of General Medicine by Middelveen and Stricker.

Abstract: Morgellons disease (MD) is a dermopathy characterized by multicolored filaments that lie under, are embedded in, or project from skin. Although MD was initially considered to be a delusional disorder, recent studies have demonstrated that the dermopathy is associated with tickborne infection, that the filaments are composed of keratin and collagen, and that they result from proliferation of keratinocytes and fibroblasts in epithelial tissue. Culture, histopathological and molecular evidence of spirochetal infection associated with MD has been presented in several published studies using a variety of techniques. Spirochetes genetically identified as Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto predominate as the infective agent in most of the Morgellons skin specimens studied so far. Other species of Borrelia including Borrelia garinii, Borrelia miyamotoi, and Borrelia hermsii have also been detected in skin specimens taken from MD patients. The optimal treatment for MD remains to be determined.

Characterization and evolution of dermal filaments from patients with Morgellons disease

Abstract: Morgellons disease is an emerging skin disease characterized by formation of dermal filaments associated with multisystemic symptoms and tick-borne illness. Some clinicians hypothesize that these often colorful dermal filaments are textile fibers, either self-implanted by patients or accidentally adhering to lesions, and conclude that patients with this disease have delusions of infestation. We present histological observations and electron microscopic imaging from representative Morgellons disease samples revealing that dermal filaments in these cases are keratin and collagen in composition and result from proliferation and activation of keratinocytes and fibroblasts in the epidermis. Spirochetes were detected in the dermatological specimens from our study patients, providing evidence that Morgellons disease is associated with an infectious process.

Abstract: Bovine digital dermatitis is an emerging infectious disease that causes lameness, decreased milk production, and weight loss in livestock. Proliferative stages of bovine digital dermatitis demonstrate keratin filament formation in skin above the hooves in affected animals. The multifactorial etiology of digital dermatitis is not well understood, but spirochetes and other coinfecting microorganisms have been implicated in the pathogenesis of this veterinary illness. Morgellons disease is an emerging human dermopathy characterized by the presence of filamentous fibers of undetermined composition, both in lesions and subdermally. While the etiology of Morgellons disease is unknown, there is serological and clinical evidence linking this phenomenon to Lyme borreliosis and coinfecting tick-borne agents. Although the microscopy of Morgellons filaments has been described in the medical literature, the structure and pathogenesis of these fibers is poorly understood. In contrast, most microscopy of digital dermatitis has focused on associated pathogens and histology rather than the morphology of late-stage filamentous fibers. Clinical, laboratory, and microscopic characteristics of these two diseases are compared.

“Morgellons disease is a multi-system illness characterized by the formation of unusual, sometimes brightly colored fibers within skin. It is a debilitating, painful and life impacting condition. In addition to slowly healing skin lesions, an array of multi-system symptoms can occur, including fatigue, joint and muscle pain, intestinal problems and neurological symptoms including behavioral changes. Patients with Morgellons disease may shed unusual particles from the skin described as fibers, “sand” or seed-like black specks, or crystallized particles.”

In both 2013 and 2015, international scientists contradicted this theory by showing borrelia spirochetes in skin samples. But, similarly to MSIDS (multi systemic infectious disease syndrome or Lyme with friends) denial, most mainstream doctors deny the science.

Two additional laboratories (Oklahoma State and IGenex) have now replicated finding multiple bacterial species as well as three different species of borrelia DNA in Morgellons skin samples.

Defending Morgellon’s patients, Oklahoma State’s Dr. Wymore states,

“Collectively, the research into Morgellons disease clearly shows a bacterial, infective process in these patients. In contrast, and despite the bombastic claims of some, there is zero convincing, scientific evidence that Morgellons is a psychogenic illness.”

The CEHMDF is the recognized authority and primary funding source for Morgellons disease medical-scientific research. There are neither grants, nor any other public or private funding to support research for Morgellons. Donations are tax deductible in the US. To learn more about Morgellons disease go to www.MorgellonsDisease.org.